by Willow Rose
My mom approached us. "You'll have to excuse my daughter," she said. "She knows nothing about hunting, obviously."
Duncan smiled. "That's okay, Mrs. Jones. Neither did I at her age. It's only natural."
"Naturally," my mother said and pulled back.
I stared into the darkness, wondering if I would ever be able to join them out there—whether I was going to grow out of this feeling, this repulsive sensation I got when thinking about those poor animals out there about to be killed for the mere fun of it. Would I grow older and love stuff like this?
I didn't think so.
I sipped my Coke again when someone came up to Duncan's father.
"Sir," he said and rubbed his hands together.
"Yes?"
"The prey has been released."
Chapter Six
Jayden locked the door to his bedroom. He had started doing that since Logan had tried to run him over the week before. He was terrified of what his brother would do next, trying to get rid of him.
His brother had excused himself by saying that he lost control of the car and, apparently, their parents had believed him. They believed anything he said. But Jayden knew better. His brother had said it himself. He wanted him out of the way so that he could become the next leader of their pack. And he had killed before. Jayden and his friends all believed Logan was the one who had killed Natalie Jamieson, Blake Fisher, and Mrs. Sharpe and that he was the one who attacked Melanie and made her a werewolf. If Logan wanted to get rid of Jayden so he could be the next alpha, it would be easy for him to kill him. Not that Jayden wouldn't freely give it to him because he wasn't planning on fulfilling his destiny anyway, but his brother didn't know that, and he probably wouldn't believe him if he told him.
Jayden sighed and sat at his desk. He glanced at Robyn's house. It was completely empty since Robyn and her family had left for a hunt of some sort on one of Duncan Pritchard's old estates out in the countryside. It made Jayden so furious to think about, he could hardly contain it. The fact that she was going away to be with that guy made Jayden's blood boil. He had never felt such deep rage inside of him. It was bad, and he was trying the best he could to control it, but it was getting harder. He sensed that Robyn had started to like the guy and it made him anxious. This guy had everything. He could give Robyn everything in the world, whereas Jayden had nothing. If they chose to leave together when they turned eighteen, he would have even less. Why would she choose to be with someone like him, when she could have all…that and please her mother at the same time? He feared it was only a matter of time before Robyn came to the same conclusion. Fact was, Duncan was more worthy of her, more in her league. Jayden would never be good enough for someone like her. Never.
Who was he kidding?
Jayden sighed and pulled the curtain. He hadn't slept well for the past week. Ever since his brother threatened him, he had slept with one eye open, waking up to every sound in the house. It would be so easy for Logan to kill him in his sleep, just sneak in there in his wolf shape and rip him open. He could tell their parents some lie that he couldn't control himself or something and he probably would get away with it. At least Jayden believed so. Logan got away with everything.
Jayden returned to watching TV, throwing a football in the air while some show about zombies rolled across the screen, which he wasn't really watching. He wondered about Robyn and how she was doing among all those vampires and whether she would be all right.
Jayden had been going to Jazmine's house almost every day since her dad was…well, what actually happened to him, Jayden had no words for, but he was dead. And Jayden felt so terrible. He felt he had to take care of her and her mother. Today, he had brought them a tuna casserole that his mom made. Jazmine invited him inside. Jayden couldn't stand the atmosphere inside the house. The air was so heavy, and it felt horrible just being there. Outside the windows, animals were still gathering in flocks and birds were pecking on the windows, but Jazmine and her mother didn't seem to notice. Jayden had handed her the casserole.
"Thank you," he finally got the courage to say.
"For what?"
"For saving my life," he said.
He swallowed, hard. He felt so awful. It was all his fault. If his brother hadn't tried to kill him, if Jazmine hadn't saved his life by pushing him, then her dad wouldn't have used witchcraft to save her, and Mr. Aran wouldn't have…whatever it was he did to him.
"No problem," she said. "I did what anyone would have done."
"Still…it was quite something."
He looked into her eyes. They were a deep blue color and had been ever since it happened. He sensed she too was blaming him but was just trying to be polite. Did she resent him for what happened? He could hardly blame her if she did.
Jayden sighed in his bed thinking about the incident when he heard the front door close. He saw his parents and brother running, then change into wolves as they sprinted toward the mountains.
Finally, he was all alone for the rest of the night.
Chapter Seven
"Listen…honey. I know you saw what your dad did and…well…I think that…it's important that you…well…"
Jazmine stared at her mother as she fought to find the words. She had come into her room to say goodnight, then sat down on the edge of the bed and told her she needed to talk to her about something important.
They had hardly spoken a word to one another since it happened. They had cried a lot and hugged a lot, but not many words had been shared in the house, where Jazmine had felt like she had been trapped for the entire week since her world completely crashed. She hadn't even been to school since her mom told her she could take the week off till the funeral was over. But to be honest, Jazmine couldn't wait to get back to her friends; she couldn't wait to get out of the house and finally start living a little again.
Since her dad died, it was like everything had been standing still. Especially time. She often looked out the window and sensed how life was just passing her by, wondering how the world could seem so normal, how people were still continuing their lives like nothing had happened, when everything inside of Jazmine's house, inside of her, had fallen apart. It was never going to be the same again. Her life wouldn't, and neither would she.
Something was missing. A big part of her was gone, and she was never going to get it back. Still, she was looking forward to trying to get back to normal. Being inside this house with her grieving mother, who refused to eat or speak, didn't make things any better. Jazmine desperately needed normalcy back. At least some of it. She craved things going back to what they used to be, even though she knew it would never be the same. Not when he wasn't there anymore.
She knew her mother would never be the same either. The look in her eyes had changed drastically, and Jazmine could hardly stand looking into them. It was tough not being able to make your mother happy again. Jazmine had always managed to make her mother laugh or at least cheer up when she was down. Especially when she was younger. She was the best at making her mother feel better when she was sad or scared. It was her gift, she had always believed. But not anymore.
Now, her mother's face had this look to it that she had never seen before. It was a smile of sorts, but not really a smile. It wasn't a happy smile, it was a sad one, a pretend one, one that should make Jazmine feel better and not worry, but one that had the exact opposite effect.
Jazmine had found herself being jealous of everyone else because they weren't hit by this disaster because their lives went back to normal. Especially Jayden, who had come day after day, often bringing food. It was nice and all, but she could tell he felt guilty about what happened and that he feared she would blame him. Truth be told, Jazmine was too exhausted and too sad to blame anyone. What happened had happened, you couldn't change it no matter who you blamed—and right now, she focused only on surviving this one day. She didn't really want to have to deal with his guilt or anyone else's. They still had dads to return to; she didn't.
"What I’m s
aying is…I know you must be wondering about it, thinking about how he did what he did and all the animals following you and all that…and the fact is, I want you, no I need you to stay away from it all. I never thought you would have to deal with this till you were eighteen, so I’ve never prepared you for any of it, but for you, it came earlier than expected and then… Well, you saw your dad and so…but promise me, Jazmine, promise me you'll stay away from it. Don't touch any of it."
What her mother was saying didn't make much sense because she was so scared of saying the actual word. Still, Jazmine knew what she meant.
Witchcraft.
She wanted her to stay away from it and not use it.
"It's too dangerous," she said. "You saw what happened to your dad. It could easily happen to us too."
Jazmine sighed and promised her mother never to touch anything again, then enjoyed a short hug. She had so many questions she wanted to ask, but she could tell her mother couldn't bear them right now. Jazmine wanted her mother happy and unburdened more than anything else right now, so she just agreed with her. The questions had to wait.
As soon as her mother left, Jazmine lay in her bed, wide awake, listening to the owls outside, eyes blinking, staring at the ceiling and wondering about her powers. As the clock struck midnight, she rose from her bed, went into the hallway, and pulled down the hatch.
The book was where she had left it. She sighed once again, then listened to make sure her mother stayed in her bedroom, then opened it with a light gasp of awe.
She picked a couple of random words from the book, then said them out loud three times:
"Mus Musculus, Mus Musculus, Mus Musculus."
Jazmine chuckled at how stupid it sounded. She closed the book again and looked around. There was a box in the corner that she opened when suddenly the ceiling started to shake. She gasped and turned to look just in time to see about two hundred mice running towards her, their little feet screeching across the planks, making it sound like thunder approaching.
Jazmine's eyes widened as they rumbled toward her, causing the entire attic to shake. She held her breath, then—for no reason she could explain—she lifted her hand in the air and immediately all the mice stopped. They stood in front of her, staring up at her with their little shiny black eyes, looking mostly like they waited for her to tell them what to do.
They obeyed me. They totally obeyed me!
She didn't know what to do next or how to get rid of them, but she had to, so her mother wouldn't see them. She couldn't know she had just broken her promise to her and performed witchcraft.
"Go to Amy's house," she whispered, not expecting that they actually would. But one by one, they turned around and disappeared into cracks and holes and down the side of the house, and soon she spotted them out the small window in the attic as they stormed down the street.
Chapter Eight
"Get away from me, you bastard!"
The girl that had run into Stacy was crabbing backward across the soil. Her face was torn in fear.
Stacy stared at her. "Who are you?"
The girl shook her head. "Please, don't. Please, don't come closer."
"It's okay," Stacy said. "I’m not going to hurt you."
The girl didn't believe her. Her nostrils were flaring wildly, and she was panting. Stacy couldn't help wondering if she too was running from that creepy guy.
"I'm Stacy," she said, placing a hand on her chest.
The girl was still panting heavily. Her desperate look made Stacy scared.
"Maria," she almost whispered.
"Maria, okay…Maria…tell me, were you kidnapped too?" Stacy asked.
Maria nodded with a whimper.
"And then he let you go?"
She nodded again, this time with less of a whimper.
"That's what happened to me too," Stacy said.
"So…you're…you were in that place…too?"
"I don't know if we were kept in the same place, but yes. I was kept in a cage until he came and let me out."
Relief came over the girl's face. Stacy felt it too. The sensation of suddenly not being all alone in the world, the feeling of hope.
"Maybe…maybe we can help each other get out of this place?" Stacy asked, almost smiling. "I mean, two minds are better than one. That's what they say, right?"
Maria nodded. "Sure is."
"Okay," Stacy said and grabbed Maria's hand in hers. She helped her get up from the ground. Maria's hand was shaking. Stacy looked around them, then up at the moon. She didn't know much about surviving in the wilderness or which way was north or anything useful like that, but she did know that the moon rose in the east like the sun. And it wasn't on top of them yet, it was still lingering halfway up, so if they walked toward it, it had to be toward the east, right?
She wasn't sure.
"Come,” she said to Maria anyway, pretending like she knew this was the way out. After all, if they kept walking, they had to reach the end of this forest at some point, right? And it was better to keep moving than staying still in case that guy had regretted letting them out and was coming for them.
"Let's go," she said and pulled Maria's hand.
Having someone to help, someone to take care of, gave Stacy new strength and energy. If nothing else, then she was going to do her best to keep Maria safe. And even if she died trying, she was going to get her out of there. She was going to do all she could to make sure she brought her to safety.
Stacy turned her head and looked at Maria, giving her a reassuring smile, when she heard the sound of bells chiming in the distance. Maria gasped and looked at her with big, fearful eyes.
"Let's hurry up," Stacy said, hoping the sound of the bells meant there was a town nearby. Maybe a town with a small clock in the church at the center of it. The thought felt calming, yet she wasn't able to shake the feeling that they were still in great danger.
"Do you think you can run again?"
Chapter Nine
The clock on the tower of the estate was chiming loudly, telling us it was midnight.
I stood by Duncan and looked out over the forest when he kissed my cheek gently. I gasped and looked up at him. His fangs were beginning to show and his fingers growing claws. I pulled away. I had never seen him turn and wasn't really prepared to. Our eyes locked one last time.
"I'll see you in the morning," he said, then turned on his heel and rushed out of the room.
They had given me one of the rooms upstairs to sleep in while the hunt went on. Just like the other kids who had come with their parents and who probably had no clue who or what their parents were.
The room was beautiful and decorated so stylishly I didn't dare to touch anything. I wasn't very sleepy and, to be honest, I didn't really know what to do with myself. The room had a small balcony, so I walked out on it and took in a breath of fresh air.
It was a beautiful, clear, and bright moonlit night, but I found it very creepy, to be honest. To know that out there among those tall trees raged maybe twenty vampires, hunting for animals and drinking their blood, scared me like crazy, even if some of them were my family. They all wanted me to believe they were going in there to hunt and shoot, but I knew the reality. I knew they were just drinking their blood.
I wondered about Jayden as I stared into the darkness. How was he doing? He hated the fact that I was going away for this weekend with my family, spending time with Duncan and his family. He didn't even try to hide that he did. I felt bad for putting him through it, but what could I do? It wasn't like my family gave me a choice.
Jayden and I hadn't seen each other much since Jazmine's dad died a week ago. We had all pretty much stayed with our families. What happened to him was awful. Especially the way everyone pretended like it really was a heart attack like the doctor had concluded. Jazmine was a mess still, and I worried about her greatly. Her mother hadn't left the house since it happened, and she barely let Jazmine do so either. They kept mostly to themselves, dealing with their grief. I wanted to be
there more for Jazmine, but my mother wasn't fond of me going over there and being with that family since she believed Mr. Aran was keeping a close eye on them. She didn't want me associated with them in any way, and she especially didn't want me to be in the house if he came back for more of them.
I had asked again and again why Mr. Aran had done what he did, and why he got away with it, but my mother refused to answer and spoke about something else every time I did. She simply avoided answering it.
Tomorrow was the funeral, and we were going to get back just in time to join them.
I heard the sound of a wolf howling coming from the mountains and smiled, hoping it was Melanie and that she was having fun, finally being able to run and roam the way she was supposed to. At least my parents were too busy here, hunting other animals, to try and track her down, and she would be free to roam this night. I wondered what Jayden's family would do if they ran into her up there while going out at night. I was beginning to understand the danger they—and my family—were in because of Mr. Aran living on our street and why they were so eager to get rid of Melanie, but I still believed it was wrong. There had to be another way. More killings didn't solve anything, in my opinion.
I was lost in my chain of thought and had actually decided to go to bed, finally calling it a night, when I heard the first scream.
What the…?
It sounded like it came from the forest in front of me. But it didn't sound animal-like at all. It sounded very much like a human scream and not just an ordinary scream or cry. This was the type of scream only emerging from the mouth of someone facing the terror of death.
And it wasn't just one scream. One followed the other, and soon it was like the entire forest in front of me was screaming in horror.
Chapter Ten
"I…can't…run anymore," Maria said, panting. She stopped and leaned against a tree while catching her breath.
